Ex-Gov. Blagojevich released from prison after Trump pardon

CHICAGO (AP) — Rod Blagojevich walked out of prison Tuesday after President Donald Trump cut short the 14-year prison sentence handed to the former Illinois governor for political corruption. The Republican president said the punishment imposed on the Chicago Democrat and one-time contestant on Trump's...

President Trump goes on clemency spree, and the list is long

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump went on a clemency blitz Tuesday, commuting former Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich's 14-year prison sentence and pardoning former New York City police commissioner Bernie Kerik, among a long list of others. Those who got a break from Trump include financier Michael...

Man sentenced to at least 22 years in 2019 slaying

CHALLIS, Idaho (AP) — A man accused of fatally shooting another man, then burning and burying the body, was sentenced Tuesday to at least 22 years in prison. KIFI reports that Ben Savage plead guilty to the slaying of 23-year-old Charles McBride in February of 2019. Judge Stevan H. Thompson called the...

Woman who says Rick James raped her in 1979 sues estate

BUFFALO, N.Y. (AP) — A woman who says she was raped by late R&B singer Rick James when she was 15 years old is suing his estate for $50 million. The unidentified plaintiff says James raped her while she was staying at a group home in Buffalo, New York, in 1979. The lawsuit was filed on Thursday against...

Week 4 of Weinstein trial: Closing arguments, two universes

NEW YORK (AP) — Harvey Weinstein grinned as he left court, and his lawyers said he was confident heading into what could be his last weekend of freedom as his New York City rape trial moves closer to a verdict. Jurors are set to start deliberating Tuesday, their task put off a day because court is closed...

Michael Avenatti is convicted of trying to extort Nike

NEW YORK (AP) — Michael Avenatti, the combative lawyer who gained fame by representing porn star Stormy Daniels in lawsuits involving President Donald Trump, was convicted Friday of trying to extort sportswear giant Nike. The verdict was returned by a federal jury in Manhattan following a three-week trial...

Editorial Roundup: New England

Editorials from around New England: CONNECTICUT Proposed ‘clean slate’ law deserves strong, but careful, consideration Hartford Courant Feb. 9 The principle behind “clean slate” laws is simple: Criminal convictions, including those for minor offenses, can follow someone their whole...

Reworked charges in Chicago cite another R. Kelly accuser

CHICAGO (AP) — An updated federal indictment against R. Kelly unsealed Friday in Chicago includes sex abuse allegations involving a new accuser, adding to the jailed singer's mounting legal challenges across three states. The 13-count superseding indictment doesn't add more charges against Kelly. It...

Michael Avenatti, who represented porn star in lawsuits against Trump, convicted of trying to extort Nike

Smollett case could complicate reelection of top prosecutor

CHICAGO (AP) — The decision to restore charges against Jussie Smollett could bedevil the reelection bid of the first black woman to hold Chicago's top law enforcement job and potentially alter the trajectory of a prosecutor once seen as a rising star in Illinois politics. The charges drew a stinging public...